All France articles – Page 21
-
News‘Drone train’ completes first trial
FRANCE: National operator SNCF has successfully tested a remotely-controlled train over a distance of 4 km in the Paris suburbs. Representing a key stage in SNCF’s programme to develop automated operations, the ‘drone train’ ran from Villeneuve-Saint-Georges to Juvisy and was driven from a control centre established at Vigneux-sur-Seine. Describing ...
-
NewsRENFE seeks to take on the TGV
FRANCE: On July 1, RENFE Operadora confirmed its intention to enter the French high speed passenger market, saying it had lodged the relevant applications with regulator Arafer, safety authority EPSF and infrastructure manager SNCF Réseau. The Spanish national operator would compete with incumbent SNCF on high speed routes initially using ...
-
NewsSNCF and Airbus to trial satellite geolocation technology
FRANCE: SNCF and Airbus Defence & Space signed a co-operation accord at the Paris Air Show in Le Bourget on June 19. The agreement last three years and covers the development and adaptation of satellite geolocation technology, based on the EU’s Galileo and European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Systems, for digital ...
-
NewsTrenitalia prepares for Paris – Milano launch
EUROPE: The first of five ETR1000 high speed trainsets being modified to operate Trenitalia’s planned open access service between Milano and Paris is expected to begin test running in France next month, following the completion of retrofitting work. The trainsets are being fitted with TVM cab signalling and KVB automatic ...
-
NewsFlixTrain seeks to enter French passenger market
FRANCE: FlixMobility GmbH has lodged an application with rail regulator Arafer to launch five inter-city routes from January 1 2021. The FlixTrain-branded services would cover four domestic routes as well as one international route. The proposed services are seven return trains per day between Paris Nord and Brussels Nord ...
-
NewsStadler sees success on six axles
EUROPE: Stadler says that its family of six-axle diesel, electric and bi-mode Eurodual locomotives are ‘30 to 40% better in terms of track forces’ than ‘most of the four-axle locos in use around Europe today’. Antonio García Ricos, Engineering Vice-President of Stadler Valencia, told the Transport Logistic trade show in ...
-
NewsThello bids to run Milano – Paris high speed service
FRANCE: Trenitalia subsidiary Thello has notified rail regulator ARAFER of its intention to launch the first open access passenger services on the French high speed network. The regulator announced on June 4 that Thello had requested paths from SNCF Réseau for a twice-daily service between Milano and Paris to start ...
-
NewsBorne backs early extension of Rhin-Rhône high speed line
FRANCE: Transport Minister Elisabeth Borne has agreed to ‘look again’ at the timescale for completing the second phase of the LGV Rhin-Rhône high speed line, serving Dijon and Mulhouse. LGV Rhin-Rhône opened with the December 2011 timetable change, covering an initial 140 route-km between Auxonne, east of Dijon, and Petit-Croix, ...
-
NewsCDG Express delayed to 2026
FRANCE: The CDG Express project to provide a dedicated airport express between central Paris and Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport is to be delayed by two years, Transport Minister Elisabeth Borne announced on May 28. Running for 32 km between Paris-Est and the LGV Interconnexion station at Charles-de-Gaulle airport Terminal 2, CDG Express ...
-
NewsPACA orders electro-diesel multiple-units
FRANCE: Acting on behalf of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, SNCF Mobilités has awarded Alstom a €32m contract to supply five four-car Coradia Polyvalent electro-diesel multiple-units. The regional units to be delivered between the end of 2020 and early 2021 will have 214 seats with individual reading lights and power sockets, ...
-
NewsSNCF business to invest in start-ups
FRANCE: SNCF is to establish a subsidiary branded 574 Investments to manage its involvement with technology start-ups. The name refers to the 2007 world rail speed record set by a modified TGV. SNCF has already invested in four funds dedicated to supporting young technology companies, but 574 Investments ...
-
NewsBourgogne-Franche-Comté orders Alstom EMUs
FRANCE: Alstom has been awarded a €170m firm order to supply 16 six-car Coradia Polyvalent multiple-units to the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region. The latest contract announced on May 10 is the first for this six-car electric variant of the Cordia Polyvalent family. The EMUs will have 355 seats, with the ‘inter-city style’ ...
-
Rail Business UKLondon – Bordeaux high speed rail service ‘blueprint’
EUROPE: A ‘blueprint’ for the operation of direct high speed services to and from London was presented to the Mayor of Bordeaux and the President of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region on April 29. The proposals are being developed jointly by HS1 Ltd, which manages the high speed line between London and ...
-
NewsHauts-de-France starts regional tendering
FRANCE: Proposals to tender the operation of regional passenger services in Hauts-de-France from the end of 2022 were unveiled by the regional council on April 23. Following the lead set by Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur last month, the region is planning to open up local rail services to competition in line with ...
-
NewsLéman Express cross-border EMU unveiled
EUROPE: The first completed Alstom electric multiple-unit for the Léman Express cross-border regional passenger service between Genève in Switzerland and destinations in France was unveiled at the manufacturer's Reichshoffen factory on April 10. SNCF has ordered 17 EMUs from Alstom’s Coradia Polyvalent family, known as Régiolis by the operator. The ...
-
NewsCustoms buildings handed over as Eurotunnel prepares for Brexit
FRANCE: On April 4 Eurotunnel officially handed over to the French authorities buildings intended for customs, veterinary and phytosanitary inspection services. The Douane-SIVEP control centre will be open 24/7 for Ministry of Agriculture officials and customs officers. It provides nine unloading docks, a refrigerated storage area, 100 parking spaces ...
-
Rail Business UKEurotunnel awards Shuttle refurbishment contract
EUROPE: Channel Tunnel concessionaire Eurotunnel has appointed Bombardier Transportation to undertake the mid-life refurbishment of its nine passenger Shuttle trainsets, which carry cars, coaches and their occupants between the terminals in the UK and France. The contract announced on March 20 is worth €150m over seven years, with deliveries of ...
-
NewsSNCF brings forward Ouigo expansion to Toulouse
FRANCE: Originally envisaged for 2020, Ouigo low-cost high speed services between Paris and Toulouse are now to begin running on July 6. The SNCF subsidiary has announced that ticket sales for its first trains will open on March 26. Ouigo will initially operate one train each way per day, calling ...
-
NewsTrains certified as ‘Guaranteed French Origin’
FRANCE: Certification of origin might be more closely associated with wine and cheese, but Bombardier Transportation has now obtained the Pro France association’s ‘Guaranteed French Origin’ certification for the Francilien and Omneo/Regio 2N multiple-units designed and produced at its Crespin site in Hauts-de-France. ‘This is the first time a ...
-
NewsPACA launches TER tendering process
FRANCE: President of Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, Renaud Muselier has announced the start of tendering for the operation of local rail services from the end of 2022. Speaking in Marseille on February 19, alongside Vice-President for Transport & Intermobility Philippe Tabarot, Muselier said the quality of service being provided to around 100 ...